In 2002, OBEC, the Oklahoma Department of Education, the Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education and the Governor's Office asked Achieve to study Oklahoma's policies and practices related to school improvement efforts. Aiming Higher analyzed the education policies and decisions that govern the progress of reform in three areas: standards, assessment and accountability.

Achieve focused on overall progress made in standards, assessments and accountability and reported that Oklahoma consistently maintained efforts to raise achievement for more than 10 years, establishing a firm foundation for standards-based reform. We also conducted a separate comprehensive study of the state's standards and tests, described below.

Achieve further noted that Oklahoma had made strides in developing accountability. To an unusual degree, higher education was a genuine partner in reform, working with the State Department of Education to increase students' readiness for college and improve their ability to succeed once admitted.

Achieve recommended that policymakers make the standards more rigorous and construct a more coherent and effective testing system — one that provides challenges for all students and incorporates incentives for improvement. We urged the state to develop a student data system, linked with the state's postsecondary institutions, to track performance over time. Achieve also urged Oklahoma to streamline the way it reports student achievement results to make them more useful to schools and the public.